Digital Math Game-Based Learning Environments, Academic Emotions, Self-Regulated Learning, and Mathematics Achievement Among School-Aged Learners: A Scoping Review

Source abstract

Digital game-based learning environments (DGBLEs) are increasingly used in mathematics education, highlighting the need to better understand their role in supporting students’ learning, emotional experiences, and self-regulated learning (SRL). This scoping review maps and synthesizes the existing literature on DGBLEs designed for school-aged learners, with a focus on mathematics achievement, academic emotions (including math anxiety), and SRL processes. A comprehensive search of multiple databases identified 192 studies that met inclusion criteria. Of the 185 studies examining mathematics achievement, 127 (68.6%) reported positive findings, while 45 (24.3%) reported mixed or partial findings. A substantial body of research also examined academic emotions. Among the 97 studies directly examining academic emotions, 25 examined negative emotions either exclusively (n = 12) or alongside positive emotions (n = 13), with findings generally indicating reductions in negative emotional experiences, including math anxiety. In contrast, relatively few studies directly examined SRL (n = 34), with self-efficacy representing the most frequently examined SRL-related outcome. Across studies, evidence suggests that DGBLEs may support SRL processes, particularly when scaffolded through structured prompts and feedback. As a scoping review, these findings represent a synthesis of trends across heterogeneous studies rather than causal effects. Overall, this review highlights the potential of DGBLEs to support both cognitive and affective aspects of mathematics learning, while identifying key gaps in the measurement of SRL and emotional processes. Findings underscore the need for more rigorous, theory-driven, and multimodal research to better understand how achievement, emotion, and SRL interact in digital learning environments.